PRS Budget Passes; Land, Cox, Sullivan Elected to School Board

Voters who went to the polls yesterday overwhelmingly approved the 2012-13 Princeton Regional school budget that includes a tax levy of $63.4 million.

The budget passed by a vote of 1,193 to 360. Turnout of registered voters in Princeton Township was just 8.4 percent. Voter turnout in the Borough was 13 percent.

In the Borough, newcomer Martha Land was the top vote getter in the contested school board election for two three-year terms on the board. She won a seat on the board with 405 votes. Incumbent and current board president Rebecca Cox was reelected with 387 votes. Candidate Dudley Sipprelle had 197 votes.

Patrick Sullivan ran unopposed in Princeton Township and received 741 votes.

The school district, which serves just over 3,300 students, has an operating budget of $75.6 million for the 2012-13 budget year that begins July 1. Total projected district expenses, including $4.5 million in debt service, add up to $82.4 million.

In the Borough, the owner of a home assessed at the average of $748,155 will see school taxes increase about $337 as a result of the tax levy being approved. In the Township, the owner of a home assessed at the Township average of $822,262 will see their taxes increase about $906.